


Couples at Cupids

by M3zzaTh3M3z



Series: Angels, the coffee shop where I work [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!, Supernatural, 逆転裁判 | Gyakuten Saiban | Ace Attorney
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Established Gabriel/Sam Winchester, Fluff, Matchmaking, Multi, Valentine's Day, scorekeepers - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-11
Updated: 2016-02-19
Packaged: 2018-05-19 19:27:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5978472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/M3zzaTh3M3z/pseuds/M3zzaTh3M3z
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>' “You’re always going on about soulmates and the power of love and stuff right?”<br/>I nod. “Yep.”<br/>She smiles warmly. “Yeah, it’s cute. But my point is if they’re really meant to be, then surely they won’t need our help?" '</p><p> It's Valentine's Day at Cupids (usually Angels) the coffee shop where I work, and somehow I've agreed to not interfere with out customers' love lives for once. Which shouldn't be too hard... except there are a lot of cute couples today. Some of which might need just the tiniest little nudge in the right direction. I mean, it's not really interfering if nobody finds out, right? </p><p>(Lots of different ships in my favourite love cafe, technically following on from Meddling Baristas Save Angels but should be able to stand alone)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Welcome to Cupids

For once I know exactly what time it is when I burst into Angels, the coffee shop where I work, though that might be mainly because I caught sight of my watch as I unlocked the door. Usually I can just about drag myself in at the right time and only then because of the possibility of seeing Mina, my once crush, now awesome girlfriend, who also happens to be my boss.

However today not only am I here an hour early, but also here first, something only possible because of something I love more than Mina and sleep combined and that thing is… (*dramatic internal drumroll*) love itself! For not only do I know exactly what time it is (six am if anyone cares) but also what day, and that day is the 14th of February, aka Valentine’s Day aka THE GREATEST DAY OF THE YEAR.

So six am may not be the most romantic time of the day, especially when you’re alone in a dimly lit café, but I had to get here early to surprise Mina and since she usually gets here pretty early herself it’s not like I had much of a choice. She’s not _quite_ as into the whole romance thing as me, which isn’t to say she doesn’t love me, just she doesn’t seem to find it as necessary to celebrate each weekly anniversary. I’ve calmed down a bit since then but I’m not letting that stop me trying to give her the best Valentines ever, especially after unexpected flu last year meant we had to miss it. Ideally I’d be taking her on a date all day, but we’ve got to work and we’re expecting Valentines to be pretty busy here, which might have a little something to do with Angels becoming somewhat known as ‘the love café’ around here after my book became slightly popular, at least locally. Instead I’m decorating the place, and I’ve planning a chilled evening in with some of her favourite treats. Not the kind of all out romantic gesture I’d really like to make, but the only kind that’s really practical when I know we’re both going to be wiped out from a busy day working.

Bag of decorations placed on the counter, I flick on the electric lights and Angels is suddenly basked in a warm glow. From outside I imagine it must look so cosy, a soft brightness in the freezing gloom of early morning February, just the kind of sight that would give you hope if you were out on the street in this awful weather, looking for somewhere warm. Not that anyone other than crazies like me or those working would be out at a time like this.

Almost as soon as I have the thought, there’s a knock at the door. Startled, I spin around, unsure of what to expect. Maybe murders, robbers or Jehovah’s Witnesses? (I have an overactive imagination okay)

Whatever I was thinking of, it certainly wasn’t the college aged boy with insanely spikey hair I find stood outside, wrapped up warm in an enormous pink sweater and red scarf, peering anxiously inside from behind the huge cardboard box in his arms.

Cautiously, I open the door a little, but not too far. Like I said, it’s either people working or crazies who are around at a time like this, and he doesn’t look dressed for work. “Can I help you?”

“Hey, uh, are you open?” he asks, his eyes gleaming brighter with hope as he looks inside and sees the comfortable interior.

“Well… not really…” I reply and he nods like he expected it, but the movement turns into a shiver him as an icy blast of wind rushes past and I feel my heart melting. He’s dressed oddly but anyone in such a bright pink sweater can’t be too bad surely? “Are you alright out there?”

He nods enthusiastically. “I’m fine! Just trying to find a place for a date!”

“A date?” It’s probably not good that all it takes is the slightest hint he could be romantic for me to trust him enough to let him it. “Tell me about it.” I open the door fully, step out of the way and he smiles gratefully as he enters.  

“Well, today is valentines and there’s this uh… person I’m really in love with!” he begins to babble excitedly. “So I thought I should ask them on a date today! But the thing is they’re really special so the date needs to be really special as well!”

I nod sympathetically, I know how he feels, trying to find something to match up to that perfect person. It’s doubly hard when you have to spend the whole time at work, though at least I’ll be with Mina.

“So then I decided to go out and find a nice café or something I could take them and ask if I could put up my extra valentines decorations!” he continues, nodding down vigorously at the cardboard box in his arms. I gesture for him to put it down on the counter and he does. “But I guess I set out a bit too early…”

I reach out and begin to open the box, but then I stop and look to him for permission. He nods quickly for me to go ahead and I carefully push up the flaps. Inside, I find a multitude of beautiful romantic decorations, cut outs of flowers and hearts and cupids in an entire lipstick counter’s range of red and pinks. It’s enough to put my clumsy, if loving, handmade attempts at pink paperchains to shame.

“These are beautiful…” I breathe as I carefully lift one up for inspection. “Where did you get these?”

The boy grins and blushes slightly. “I made them,” he says proudly. “I’m doing law at the moment, but before I wanted to do art and I guess I still have a little skill.”

“Well they’re a heck of a lot better than mine. I’ll help you put them up.”

For a second he looks at me in disbelief, amazed he actually got somebody to agree to let him coat a café in card cut outs, no matter how lovely they are, but then he matches my wide smile. “Thanks! I’m Phoenix, by the way.”

“Sarah,” I reply as we begin to carefully pull out the decorations. “Do you have any tack or something? I have a bit but it looks like we’re going to need a lot more.”

 

As we move around the room, scattering cutesy confetti on the tables, dangling pink cupids off lights and wrapping the room in a mega paperchain (it’s like a normal paperchain but we linked together his and mine to make a mega one) Phoenix tells me about himself. Well, honestly he tells me more about the guy he’s in love with. I believe I have met a kindred romantic soul, because nobody else I know can talk for so long about the smallest details of their loved one without even feeling the need to check if the other person is listening, or even still in the room. I know this because at one point I took a couple of decoration to put up in the breakroom and when I came back five minutes Phoenix was still happily chattering on about this Miles Edgeworth guy. Other people might have found such a relentless stream of enthusiasm for someone they’ve never even seen annoying, but I adore hearing about people in love, it’s just the cutest thing ever! During the rare lulls in his conversation/monologue I fill him in about Angels, telling him about Mina and the books and even a bit about Operation Cean (though I gloss over the parts about Gabriel, I don’t want him thinking we’re going to mess up his date.)

 

 

After nearly an hour I’ve managed to build up a mental list of all the things I have been told about Phoenix Wright and Miles Edgeworth:

  * Phoenix has _very_ spikey hair (remaining question: how is it even possible to have hair that spikey?)
  * They are both studying law
  * Phoenix wants to be a defence attorney
  * ~~Miles~~ Edgeworth wants to be a prosecutor (remaining question: why does it feel weird to think of him as anything other than Edgeworth?)
  * Edgeworth also has unusual hair but apparently it looks really nice and Phoenix _really_ wants to stroke it (Notes: I can relate)
  * About 500 billion random facts about Edgeworth including his favourite anime and what he would name his dog if he ever got one. Unfortunately I may have already forgotten basically all of those facts.



We’re just about finishing up, only one or two cut outs left in the box, when Mina walks in, looking beautiful as ever. “Sarah? What are you doing here?” she exclaims, before taking in the rest of the room, with its covering of pink and red hearts, and Phoenix, similarly attired. Then she begins to look angry as well.  “And what happened? Who is this?”

“Happy  Valentines!” I declare and rush over to embrace her. As always, she’s small and warm and my heart still skips when we touch. “We decorated!”

“I can see that…” she grumbles, disentangling herself from me. She’s still frowning, though my hug appears to have mollified her a little. I give her a peck on the cheek and she nearly smiles, so I’m probably not quite dead. “But who’s this guy? He’s not another trickster, is he?”

Phoenix rushes over to her, worry evident in his face. “I’m Phoenix Wright, law student!” he introduces himself. “I’m sorry if you don’t like the decorations but Sarah said I could put them up so I could come here on a date later! I’ll take them down if they’re a problem?”

“Hmm…” Mina considers it, her sharp eyes darting around the room, assessing for likely effect on customers and any possible problems. Eventually, she sighs. “Fine, they can stay, I don’t think they’re too much of a fire hazard.” Which is about as good as I could hope for when springing something like this on her.

“You’re the best!” I try to hug her again but she dodges to behind the counter, shaking her head.

“Now you’ve put all that up, I’m sure you won’t mind getting Angels properly sorted,” she says as she heads into the staff room. By the time she emerges, I’ve already begun wiping down everything and the coffee machines are switched on. Phoenix hovers between the sofa and the door, sometimes starting towards one or the other, but the snapping back to his original position.

I sidle up to Mina as she fiddles with the controls on one of the machines. “Any chance of a drink?” I ask, batting my eyelids.

She doesn’t look up. “20% off.”

Ouch, maybe she is a bit annoyed at my unannounced redecoration, but I don’t argue. “Do you want one, Phoenix?”

“Yes please!” he replies gratefully, before fumbling in his pocket for a handful of coins and rushing over to the counter. As I begin to make the drinks, a small expresso for us both, the alarm on Mina’s phone goes off, signalling it’s time to open up.

Looking towards the door, she notices the rain beginning to lash down against the windows and sighs as she walks over.

“Wait a second!” I exclaim. I’d almost forgotten, but as soon as I hand over Phoenix’s drink I rush to my own box of decorations and pull out a couple of paper signs.

Mina turns to look sharply. “What are they?” she asks, narrowing her eyes.

“Have a look!” I say once I finish attaching one of my signs to the door. I leave her trying to figure out my writing through the back of the paper as I rush around, sticking smaller signs onto everything with the café name on.

Finally, Mina deciphers my writing. “You renamed us ‘Cupids’?” she asks, somewhere between frowning and laughing.

“Well, yeah,” I reply. From the corner where he’s sat I hear Phoenix chuckling. “It’s like Angels, just more romantic!”

Mina gives in and laughs as she opens up. The sign in the door clatters a little as it flips from ‘CLOSED’ to ‘OPEN!’ “Reckon we’ll get a lot of couples today?” she asks cheerily. I’m glad she likes my frankly genius idea with the name.

I reach up adjust the paper on the biggest chalkboard, straightening it out. There, if you hadn’t been here before you might almost think it had always been Cupids, if you ignored the large permanent sign on the wall outside of course. “Hope so!”

“I know you do.” Mina grins. “I bet you’ll be rating them all on cuteness or something, won’t you?”

I act outraged. “Are you suggesting I would ever judge our customers’ personal lives?”

“You downright interfere with them!” laughs Mina.

Whatever astonishingly witty retort I was about to reply with is lost to time, because suddenly the door opens and in walks our first costumers (who aren’t here to redecorate) of the day. Looks like a couple to me! Two high school aged boys, both windswept and shivering, hair wet from the showers outside. I grin excitedly to Mina as I take my proper place behind the counter.

“Look how cute,” I whisper to her as they flop into the sofas.

She pulls a face and whispers back. “You think they’re together?”

“Yup!” I nod enthusiastically.

“Sarah…” she sighs, rolling her eyes, but breaking into a grin. “Not every pair that comes in here is a couple. You should have learnt that by now!”

I try to suppress an embarrassed grin at the memory of my occasional mix-ups. “Well… if they’re not together then they should be!” Immediately my mind is racing with ideas on how to find out their relationship status and how to improve it.

Sometimes Mina is like a mind reader. “Don’t mess around with them,” she says wearily. “Not today.”

 “Mina…” I whine in reply. “But today is the day of love… You can’t forbid me not to!”

For a moment she’s quiet and I can almost hear the whirring of her thoughts weighing up the pros and cons of allowing me to meddle just a little with potential couples today. Since Operation Cean I try to lay off the matchmaking, apart from a little bit for Gam (Gabriel and Sam, happily canon, which I like to think is down to me) and the occasional customer that _really_ seems to need it because the potential backlash of it going wrong it more than we should risk. I suppose with today being so romantic already it just worsens the consequences if we did mess up.

When her decision is made I imagine a final sort of clunk as her expression sets, kind, but stern. “No meddling,” she orders.

“But Minaaa…” I wheedle, knowing it’s hopeless but wanting to try anyway.

“Think of it this way,” she tries, looking up at me. “You’re always going on about soulmates and the power of love and stuff right?”

I nod. “Yep.”

She smiles warmly. “Yeah, it’s cute. But my point is if they’re really meant to be, then surely they won’t need our help? Or at least they’ll be alright for a day. ”

Sighing, I nod slowly. “Okay,” I agree. I’ll believe in the power of love and be the least meddling barista ever, at least for today. One of the boys stands up and asks the other something too quietly for me to hear. The one still sat on the couch, with the cute Bambi eyes replies and gives a small smile. “But I’m still going to keep track of the cutest couples.” Then I realise what I said. “Uh, not that I would ever judge our customers like that!”

“Sure, sure!” laughs Mina. The boy reaches the counter, orders a drink for him and his sweet ~~boy~~ friend, and I get to work. 


	2. Scorekeepers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's my babies, the scorekeepers from Haikyuu!! :D

It was already dark and miserable as Maikeru and his best friend Katsu made their way towards the University campus, where they would try and sneak a glimpse of the pro morning volleyball practice. The last thing they needed was the sudden downpour.

“Stupid rain!” cursed Maikeru as he attempted to shield his head rather ineffectively with one hand.

 Katsu wasn’t even trying, the rain had already soaked through his green tracksuit and there wasn’t much more he could do. “Let’s get inside,” he suggested, hair plastered to his head. “Volleyball isn’t worth this!”

Which, coming from the guy who placed volleyball above almost all things, except perhaps his extensive collection of cheesy romance novels, was about the biggest endorsement of being inside Maikeru had ever heard, and one he didn’t hesitate to follow. He spotted the only shop on the street with the lights on and grabbed Katsu’s arm, yanking him towards it. “C’mon!”

Once through the door he realised it wasn’t a shop, but a café. “Hey, at least we can get a hot drink while we wait for the rain to stop,” he said, unzipping his damp tracksuit top and shrugging it off. “Let’s go on the sofas, they look pretty comfy.” Without waiting for Katsu’s reply he walked over and let himself fall into the leather squishiness, then twisted around to hang his jumper over the back to dry.

Katsu stood where he was by the door, looking around the room with a curious expression. Only when he accidentally made eye contact with one of the baristas, the taller girl with the curly hair, did he snap back to attention, blushing slightly “Huh? Oh… uh yeah…” As it always did when he saw Katsu looking at pretty girls, Maikeru’s heart burned.

Sliding into the corner of the sofa, he patted the space next to him, trying to push his irrational jealously from his mind, but Katsu either didn’t notice or ignored the gesture, instead sitting on the opposite sofa, shivering slightly and twisting his cold hand around each other. Maikeru couldn’t help but imagine that, if Katsu was next to him, how easy it would be to entwine their fingers and warm him up… uh, all in the interests of being a good friend of course.

“What do you think sounds good?” he asked, mainly to distract himself as he squinted up at the menu board. There was a new paper sign stuck over whatever the old name had been, declaring the café to be called ‘Cupids,’ and he quickly looked away.

“I don’t know… Anyway, I don’t have any money on me,” Katsu replied vaguely, still looking around wide eyed. With an uncomfortable sense of realisation, Maikeru noticed the room was liberally pink and heart splattered. Dammit, he’d forgotten it was Valentine’s day… or not exactly forgotten, just… pushed it from his mind so that it wouldn’t mean anything that he just happened to make a plan to spend a significant proportion of February 14th with his good friend and nobody else, secretly watching the college volleyball team practice, which just so happened to be Katsu’s favourite activity. If he didn’t know it was Valentine’s Day it didn’t mean anything… right?

By now Maikeru’s face was beginning to match the decorations and he needed to get away before Katsu noticed, even if it meant undertaking one of the most stressful experiences ever, alone. “That’s okay, I’ll get it.” Standing up, he bumped the coffee table and it clattered loudly. He winced as he felt the eyes of everyone in the little café on him and the fact he was pretty sure the baristas were whispering about him and Katsu didn’t help his composure.

“Thanks,” Katsu replied, catching his eye for a second with a small smile, but quickly looking away again, just like the first time they’d kept score together in middle school. There was no need to say what he wanted; it was always the same and Maikeru had easily memorized it long ago.  

 

The shorter barista, the Japanese girl, was laughing at something the other had said, but cut off as Maikeru approached and retreated to the back, after shooting the other girl a sharp look about something.

“Hey, Happy Valentine’s Day!” enthused the barista, beaming at him. It wasn’t even the smug greeting of someone confident in their position as ‘person with relationship on Valentine’s Day,’ or the sarcasm of someone glumly resigned to team ‘alone on Valentine’s Day and pretending not to care,’ it was, unexpectedly, the genuine happiness of someone who actually did hope he was having a nice valentine’s day.

 “Uh… thanks…” Maikeru wasn’t entirely sure how to respond. It wasn’t exactly a standard greeting.

Not deterred by his lack of enthusiasm, the barista girl showed no signs of stopping her relentless cheeriness as she asked, “Okay, what can I get you? The menu’s just up there if you want to look!”

“Can I please have one milky hot chocolate please and uh…” suddenly he realised he’d forgotten to choose something for himself. The barista girl was standing with a patient smile but worry flared up inside him, she was going to get annoyed, he was holding her up, he’d said please too many times and he needed to pick a damn drink. Quickly, he flicked his eyes up to the board and read off whatever he caught sight of first. “A chai tea please,” he managed, and relaxed slightly. He didn’t even really like chai tea, but it would be worse to try to change it now. Stupidly stressful drink buying.

“Sure thing!” As the barista began making the drinks, Maikeru relaxed slightly examined the countertop. Usually in cafes that was where you’d find all the little cookies and muffins, but here in ‘Cupids’ there were pots of stationary and a few small stacks of copies of the same two books: a chunky volume titled ‘Unnatural’ by Carver Edlund and a slimmer, pastel pink paperback called ‘Interfering Baristas Save Cupids,’ by Sarah… and there was no surname. Maybe the author couldn’t think of a pen name or something? It looked kinda familiar, like one of those romance stories Katsu was always reading so it was probably there for some sort of Valentine’s Day promotion, though why there were horror books for sale as well Maikeru had no idea.

“Here you go, that’ll be $4 please,” the barista said, carefully placing the drinks down onto the counter. As Maikeru fumbled in his pocket for the money, she leaned forwards on the counter and asked conversationally, “You with him?” nodding over to Katsu.

“Yes, um, here you go.” Maikeru handed over a $5 bill and quickly picked up the drinks, ready to retreat to the relative safety of the sofa.

“Special discount for couples,” she explained with a grin as she handed back $1.50.  
“Uh, thanks.” Maikeru didn’t stop to think about her words, instead just hurrying back to Katsu. It was only once he’d placed the drinks in the middle of the coffee table did he realise what she meant by ‘with him’ and ‘couples,’ but it was too late to go back and correct her now. Instead, he just tried to ignore the flush rising on his skin.  

As he sank into the sofa, he inhaled the warm, coffee tinged air deeply and relaxed. At least that was over now. “Yours is the white mug with the stuff on the side,” he told Katsu, who was still looking half over his shoulder at the baristas, who were doing they’re (not very good) best at pretending they didn’t notice.

“Oh thanks,” he replied, finally turning around and leaning over the table to carefully pick up his drink. Maikeru leaned in to get his at the same moment, but froze when Katsu gave a small startled gasp. Looking up, Maikeru saw his eyes were shining. “Awesome…” he breathed.

“Huh?”

“This is the coolest! Thanks so much Maikeru!” Katsu enthused, cupping his hot chocolate tight in his hands and looking between it and Maikeru’s chai tea with the cutest smile Maikeru had ever seen him give. Confused, he looked carefully at the drinks and realised with a spark that the damn barista girl had drawn hearts on their drinks with the milk, which was sweet and all if you were a couple, but even then it didn’t warrant Katsu’s reaction.

Katsu met his eyes, flicking away for a millisecond before returning. “I uh… may I?” he asked, stumbling over the words a little, one hand peeled away from his mug and cautiously held out.

 Utterly lost, Maikeru didn’t know what else to do but nod and wait for his friend to make sense again, which might have eventually happened, if only Katsu hadn’t completely flipped the universe upside down by reaching out, cupping his face with his hand and ever so softly brushing his lips against his cheek, so lightly it would barely count as a kiss to most people, but to Maikeru it was unbelievably intimate, it was everything. In that moment he was aware of only them, everything else melted away to nothingness as he focused only on the sensation of being so close with Katsu, the way his hand was slightly warmed by the mug of hot chocolate, the way a single drop of rain ran off his hair and onto his forehead, the way neither of them dared breathe in that moment, for fear of disturbing whatever they had discovered.

And then Katsu was back in his seat, sipping his hot chocolate while watching Maikeru over the rim of the mug with bright eyes, leaving Maikeru feeling like the air had been sucked out of him. He slumped back into the sofa, mind spinning. What had just happened?

“I, uh, are you okay?” Katsu’s sparkle looked in danger of fading away as his voice wobbled slightly. “I only…”

The thought of Katsu upset pulled Maikeru back to the present, though his cheek, where his freckles were splattered and Katsu’s lips had, briefly, touched, was still tingling. “No, no!” he protested, waving his hands frantically. “It was fine! More than fine! Good!”

Dammit, he was attracting an audience now. The baristas were sneaking glances between serving customers, and those in the queue were blatantly staring. He hoped he didn’t know any of them, they’d probably seen the entire thing.

At least it reassured Katsu, who visibly relaxed. “Ah, okay…” He looked up from his mug again and his smile was visible in his eyes. “I wanted to do that for a while,” he admitted quietly. “Your freckles are… perfect.”

Automatically, Maikeru began to raise his hand to cover them, a reflex from elementary and middle school when the other kids would laugh, but then he forced his arm back down, grinning nervously. “Why do it now?” He wanted, no, needed to know.

Katsu’s face scrunched up a little in confusion, as though the answer was obvious. “Well, you know, I needed some definite sign it would be okay.”

Maikeru knew the feeling well. So many missed opportunities, shoved away because it was easier than being wrong. If he'd taken those chances, would they have had this conversation already? How much earlier? Weeks? Months? Even years, back in middle school when they’d instantly connected over that one volleyball game?

“So when I finally get a sign I’m not going to just pass up the chance,” Katsu continued with a smile. “And I mean, taking me to the café where my favourite book based, where the author works, on Valentine’s Day, and then ordering the exact same drinks the main characters do in the first chapter and it has hearts on? How much more obvious a sign do I need?” He beamed and Maikeru, who sat in dumbfounded silence.

Eventually he found his voice. “Yes… I planned this...” Okay, not exactly the most convincing lie he’d ever told but it was better than admitting it was all just incredible serendipity.

Their eyes met with the same excited smiles, and both quickly looked away with matching blushes. Unsure of what to say, Maikeru gulped down his tea and had a look outside. The sun was coming out now the rain had stopped, though it was likely still cold and windy.

“Want to go see if we can catch the end of practice?” Katsu asked. It was something he’d asked many time before, but today it seemed to hold new meaning.

“You know it.”

As they left the café, their fingers were entwined.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Um yeah hope this makes some sense if you haven't seen the scorekeepers before or haven't read the first fic I tried very hard :)  
> If you want to see more scorekeepers then find them at gay-scorekeepers on tumblr :3  
> Suggestions for what other ships to include? Let me know!

**Author's Note:**

> Okay I'll try add the other ships soon, this isn't meant to be a long fic but knowing me that's no guarantee of anything.  
> Hope you enjoy and have a lovely Valentine's Day! Please leave comments or kudos :) (or suggest a ship to visit, I haven't planned this at all yet!)


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